It would be not having to spend a dime!!! And, at the same time, living sustainably for the environment. Reusing & Re-purposing! It gives me a rush – a high!!! I love it!!!

So last week I showed you how I re-purposed a piece of fan coral into a nifty, thrifty jewelry holder. I called that post: “A fresh look for jewelry”, because it really freshened up that room nicely.

In that post I promised to show you what I did to organize my necklaces in my summer cottage.

So, without further ado…

My “Art”

(Sorry that it is an awkward camera angle, it’s a very small cottage & tight corner) So, you can see I used an old frame (which, I found in someone’s trash =) ) and hung that on the wall first. Then, I took finish nails & lined up about a dozen inside the frame about an inch down from the top to hang my necklaces on.

To hang the frame, I didn’t get too fussy because my walls are made from re-purposed plywood, so holes are not an issue. If you were to attempt this in your own home you may want to put a wooden insert into the frame and then hang that with one nail… As you can see in the pics I just hung it up with a nail in each corner…

Then it still looked like it was missing something… Well someone gave us this fantastic box of old maps. =) I just cut the desired map to fit and slid it in place. The nails & jewelry hold it in place perfect. The little painting below was my finishing touch to the “collage”….

Total cost: $0. All items I had around the house anyway =)

The moral of my story is this. Our landfills are getting full and whether or not you have the money to run out & buy whatever your heart desires, why not re-purpose something? Some of the most fabulous household items & accessories that I have seen are made from re-purposed & reused items. An old really ugly lamp from the 70′s given a fresh coat of paint & a new lamp shade looks shabby chic! A bureau from the 50′s that may or may not have been solid wood, with a fresh coat of paint & glass nobs looked like a high end designer find! An old rope off a sailboat coiled up turns into a nautical looking rug!

Start looking around you at old “junk” and picture a coat of paint on it… Or a fresh fabric… Or a totally different use than what it was intended for.

Think – outside – the box or use!!!

You will find yourself spending a whole lot less, feeling better about yourself & saving our planet one item at a time.

So, I live on a sailboat in the Caribbean during the winter months. Being on a boat has taught me A LOT! I am slowly becoming a minimalist. I keep getting rid of “stuff”. I’m finding it fascinating to discover just how little you need.

But alas, I’m getting off the given topic…

So one thing I have learned being on a boat is that NO clutter is a good. Reason(s) being that it is easier to clean & dust. It’s easier to find things. My motto is:

“Everything needs to be beautiful & have a purpose”

So that is where today’s decorating tip comes from. Look around your house, such as I did:

I didn’t have a good place to keep my jewelry that was functional
+
that piece of fan coral I found on the beach was beautiful but held no purpose
+
and that wall was looking empty
=
a fresh beachy look & fully functional!

No more wearing the same earrings because it’s easy and I don’t feel like digging around… Their all right there where I can enjoy them even if I’m not wearing them! Voila’

I will have more on this topic next week! I will show you my idea that I had for my necklaces (in my summer cottage).

To be continued…

Yeah, that was my Sunday this week. I needed to look sharp, but not show off my cleavage. I was also determined to wear the dress shown in the photograph below.

So there I was trashing my closet when the lightbulb went off! “Don’t I have a black sports bra self?” “yes… Hmm… I wonder…”

You betcha!!! I found my 15+ year old black sports bra, turned it inside out, put it over my good pushup bra and called it a wrap! It filled the gap nicely, didn’t add any extra bulk (that another article of clothing would have), and best yet, it doesn’t clog up my already small closet.

That is my lesson this week. Don’t be afraid to try something different. Don’t give up, even on the small things. Think outside of the box and get creative!!! Who knows what you can come up with?!

Do you have some wardrobe fixes that you’ve discovered? I’d love to hear em! Please share in the comments link below… Who doesn’t love a multi-use clothing item in their wardrobe?

Well, it sure wasn’t at my eye Dr.’s office! They charged me $50 to change the lenses in a pair of frames that a friend gave me!!! Then I heard of Zenni Optical…

Before I go on I’d like to say that unfortunately I do not make money from referring people to shop at Zenni. But thanks to them and their great deals on frames & lenses, I have saved a ton of money.  Therefore, it just makes me want to tell the world how happy I am.

So, after my eyeware sticker shock, I went to Zenni’s website and took a peek around. I ended up ordering 3 pairs of frames with their lenses, each pair came in a nice hard case with a micro fiber cloth… ALL 3 pairs came to $43- INCLUDING SHIPPING!!!! Did I mention that price including shipping!!! That’s less than I paid to have new lenses put in a used pair of frames!

One thing I will say is: they do take a good 3 weeks to come in the mail. But it’s easy online ordering, all you need is your prescription and pupillary distance (you can get that measured at any eye Dr office).  Since the last time I ordered, they’ve added this great feature where you can “try on” the frames by uploading your photo! Brilliant, and fun to play with!

I love my frames! They’re good quality, and I had them checked last time I was at an eye Dr.’s office and he said the prescription was “right on”! So I’m giving Zenni Optical two thumbs up! You can’t beat getting frames starting at $6.95 a pair.

Here are a couple of my frames that I ordered:

These are ones I ordered with “amber 80%” lenses.

…and those are my “everyday” frames. So, one night over dinner recently with some new friends we were laughing that myself and another woman there had almost the same, identical glasses! The only difference was that mine are amber colored and hers were green.  Turns out she paid over $600 for hers about 3 years ago! (I almost choked on my appetizer); I paid $24.00 for mine on Zenni Optical. She nearly fell off her chair! Needless to say I wrote the website down for her on a napkin.

So there you are! I shop there, most of my family loves shopping there and I tell everyone I meet – best deals on glasses that I’ve found yet! Hope it helps you too to live large for less & look fantastic in your frames!

Chicks with cents is not about depriving yourself.  It’s not about budgeting or living below your means.  Our goal is to help you to spend less on the necessities so that you can have money for the things that are important to you.

You work hard for your money!  We promise to work hard to give you tips & tricks that can help you stretch each dollar further, while never feeling like you have to give up the finer things in life.

If you’re looking to lower your bills, learn how to grow and cook “real” food, find new uses for things you already have, or just want to save a buck – you’re in the right place.  We’re here to help you improve the quality of your life and have the things that are important to you – without breaking the bank.